Category Archives: Reviews

I have probably seen KISS for the last time now. I attended the 8/31/19 show in Noblesville (or Indianapolis as some call it). It was the 1st time I had seen KISS since The Tour with Motley Crue. I skipped the tour with Def Leppard, but more about that in a bit. And let me tell you…..I am VERY glad that I ended up going.

When
the End Of The Road tour was announced, unlike some fans, I was very uncaring
about it. I went a saw KISS on “The Tour” with Motley and I thought it
was sad. In my eyes, Motley blew them out of the water. It was
almost like KISS was just going through the motions. I was sitting 3 rows
from the stage, and towards the end of it, I felt bored. So, when the
tour with Def Leppard came around, I passed. Don’t need to see a 3rd
“Double Headliner” show (Aerosmith, Motley & Def Leppard). Of course,
my 1st thought about the End Of The Road Tour was here it is. The one
last money grab from the band I love and have followed for over 35 years.
Even though I felt uncaring about the tour, I kept an eye on it. Because,
its KISS you know? So, when they announced the 1st leg of the US tour,
Indianapolis was not on it. I had a sigh of relief for Indy not being on
the list, because I did not have the fight with myself about do, I go or not go.
So, when the 2nd leg of US tour was announced, sure enough…. Indy was on
there. Now started the debating. Do I go…do I not go. What to
do? I went back and forth about it until about 3 weeks before the
show. I broke down and bought a ticket. Didn’t pay full price but
got a decent seat. Now the stage is set, off to see KISS one last time.

Pre-Show

I got
to the venue way later than I would have in the past. My wife and I took
the kids to the bounce house play land before the show. When we were done
there, the wife and kids went home, and I went to the show. Parked WAY
out in field of the venue. So, on my way up, after having been to MANY
shows before, you start looking for certain people. Face painted,
check. Dressed in full costume, check. The guy that is drunk way too
early in the evening, check. The one chick who still thinks it’s the 80’s
and her hair is way too high, check. The chick that used to be hot and
still thinks she is, check. So, I finally make my way into the gates and
head over to the merch stand. Now this is where I sound old. But I just
can’t bring myself to pay $50 for shirt. Some shirts were as much as
$75. Too me, that’s just crazy! So, after telling myself no at the
merch stand, I went and bought an overpriced soft drink ($8 but hey…it’s
refillable!) and found my seat. So, for the $175 I spent for a ticket…not
bad. In the upper section of the pavilion. Now to sit and wait for
the opening act.

David Gaibaldi – The Opening
Act

So, like most people who heard there was a painter opening for KISS on this tour, I thought are you kidding me! A painter? Couldn’t they get a decent opening band? I had stayed away from any news or info about him, because I really thought this was bad idea. I saw a juggler / mine open for John Mellencamp one year and it was horrendous. So, this bald guy takes the stage and says a couple of things and then Sweet Child O’ Mine by GNR starts and he starts painting. He’s jumping around, dancing, and looks like he is just making crazy lines all over the canvas. Then all sudden I see it. It’s a painting of Slash! Ok…I get what he does now, and this is cool! He did a 2nd painting of Steven Tyler from Aerosmith, which he painted the portrait upside down. And then he ends by painting a portrait of KISS. After seeing all this all I can is…. wow. That was amazing. Nowhere near who or what I thought the opening act should be, but it was totally cool!

The Show

So here we go. The start to my last KISS show ever. Lights go out, crowd goes nuts, and then I hear something I have not heard in a long time. “ALL RIGHT INDIANAPOLIS!! YOU WANTED THE BEST, YOU GOT THE BEST! THE HOTTEST BAND IN THE WORLD……KISS!!!’ And I swear in that moment, all was right with the world. And as I watched my band descend from the rafters, all I could think about was when I 1st saw the band back in 1987. Here it is 2019 and the start of the show still makes me feel like a kid again! So, they rip through the 1st 3 songs and it’s wonderful. And as the night and show go on it, I noticed how much energy and effort was going into the show. Sure, they don’t move around the stage like they did in the 70’s but they look like (at least this night) they were putting their heart and soul into the show. And as the show was winding down, I thought for sure that I would be a little sad knowing this was the last show for me. But to my surprise, I wasn’t. I was happy. Happy that I got to see KISS one last time put on one hell of a show. If you haven’t gone and seen the show yet……GO!!!

Ok…to start off I don’t have the disc in my hands. I did not shell out $150 for this. But if you know where to look, I got in FLAC format. So I can only review what is on the disc and show itself.
Setlist – Standard Alive II show…nothing special
Sound – Rally good audience recording for 1978. Guitars come and go at times, drums seem a bit distant, the bass is pretty loud, and the vocals are sometimes hard to hear.
The only other version of this that I had was an MP3 sourced version. Below is the first song (I Stole Your Love) from both versions (the mp3 sourced show, and the new Tarantura cd).

With that being said….here are the notes that I took while listing to the show.

Disc 1
1) Monitor Check – Crowd really sounds like a good one!
2) Peter starts drumming a bit during the “You Wanted The Best” intro
3)I Stole Your Love
– The start of the song is all messed up! Kind of sounded like Gene started to play the song before the intro was over!
– Paul sounds really into the show
– Turns into a really good version of the song
4)King Of The Night Time World
– Ace holds the beginning feedback longer than normal
– Either the guitars are hard to hear or Ace is stopping in some weird places
– Decent version…just ok
– Some really bad notes hit in the ending
– Crowd still seems hot!
+Rap – Paul asks if everybody feels alright and the crowd screams back “Alright” VERY LOUD!
5) Ladies Room
– Genes vocals not as loud as Paul’s. Tad bit hard to hear at times
– Ace does some nice (and different) fills before they get the first chorus!
– Again before the 2nd verse, Ace is doing some fills!!
– When Gene yells “NO” before each chorus, it sounds like he is in pain “Nooo Woooo Wooo”, BUT full of energy
– Really nice version, a bit different than normal
6)Firehouse
– Seems a bit fast
– Decent version
– Nothing Special
– Crowd really gets excited when Gene breathes fire!
7) Love Gun
– Opening drum part seems a bit short
– Crowd still just clapping along
– Background vocals are horrible during the chorus
– Seems a bit sloppy
– Paul is really trying to hit some high notes towards the end…not good!
– Not a very good version of this song at all!
+Rap – Paul does a call & response of “Rock N Roll” and the crowd seems way into the show!
8) Let Me Go Rock N Roll
– Gene still sounds like he is in pain dragging out the “Rock N Roll” at the start of the song
– Gene seems to be screaming a bit much
– Decent version so far!
– Different version that what I am used to (maybe not for this tour), but no bass to drum part in the middle. Goes straight to the ending guitar parts
– Very short version
9) Makin Love
– Never heard Paul use the opening “Tell you what I want to do…I want to make to you!!”, then song starts
– Seems a bit fast
– Bit of a different lyric, instead of “She says stop, baby go, go, go” the line is “She says stop, I say go!”
– Decent version, not bad
10) Christine Sixteen
– Start of the song all messed up. Almost like Peter & Gene are not in time together
– Gene actually sings the first verse….no growl!
– Ok version, never one of my fav. songs live
– The clapping along is getting a bit old
+Rap – After Paul says “We got a surprise for you tonight”, Ace gets a nice reaction from the crowd!
11) Shock Me
– Again with the clapping
– So far really good version
+SOLO – The first of the solo almost sounds like the opening to “Speedin Back To My Baby”
-One of my fav. parts of the show…sounds like a good solo…wish I could see it
– Really weird sound at the end of the smoking guitar part
(sounds like there is a small cut in the tape here)
12) I Want You
– SO far really tight version
– Always wondered why they added the extra part right before the solos
– Best they have sounded as a band on the whole disc
– The crowd is AMAZING during the call & response at the end!

Disc 2
+Rap – Instead of “were gonna call out the Dr.”…Pauls says “We are gonna listen to the Dr.” and the crowd yells “LOVE!”
1) Calling Dr. Love
– Pretty good version, band seems to have hit it’s stride for the show!
– Peter sounds like he is playing with some “pep” during the solo
– Weird echo effect on the “Yeah” at the end
2) Shout It Out Loud
– The clapping along is really getting annoying
– So far, so good. Crowd sings along well during the 1st verse
– Gene, at times, is getting carried away screaming
– Not one of my favs, but a good version
– Peter screams like crazy at one point towards the end
+ Bass Solo – Does not sound as “demon” like we are used too
– At one point..almost sounds like a guitar / or synth is playing with him…strange
3) God Of Thunder
– Must be the sound of the bass, but the beginning does not sound right at all
– Decent version after that, just sounds like a different key or something!
+ Drum Solo – Don’t know why, but the first of the solo feels very jazzy & upbeat!
– Crowd really seems to be enjoying it, might be the best response to a drum solo ever!
– Ok solo..but I could do with out it
+God Of Thunder (end) – Bass still sounds funny to me
4) Rock N Roll All Nite
– Again crowd just clapping along!
– Guitars have become almost non existent until the chorus
– Paul yells “Put the lights on” after solo
– Just a tad fast, but a good version
5) Detroit Rock City
– Start of the song is the first explosion I have noticed
– Crowd singing along well during the “Get Up” & “Get Down” parts
– So far a really good version…just a tad fast
6) Beth
– Crowd goes crazy when the song starts
– Peter doing a really nice version of the song
– Really good version!
7) Black Diamond
– Paul really holding the feedback in the into when the distortion kicks in
– Sounds like the crowd is really screaming “Black Diamond”
– At times seems a bit sloppy
– Solo very hard to hear!

I downloaded this from over at Demonoid. Just thought I would take a chance and see what its like. And it’s not worth the time to download. My first tip off should have been the size of the disc, only 2.82 GB’s. The second is I should have known better than to think that a DVD called Rare Pieces would be decent quality. Below is what is on the disc with my comments / thoughts:

Los Angeles 1977
Audio : Alive II,lost alive II,houston 77..
Video : 8mm (very raw quality) 4
I stole your love
Take me
Ladies room
Makin`love
Shout it out loud
Firehouse
I know this is 8MM footage, but I think I have seen better quality footage before. Maybe I’m wrong and this is a different angle…but just now worth watching to me.

Mexico 81
I was made for lovin`you (playback)
This is not the entire performance of this song. This is that performance with clips of different videos and performances cut into it. There is a big logo in the bottom right hand of the screen, which is a bit distracting. For how rare this might be, the picture is ok. I would rather watch the grainy footage of the entire performance.

Chumash Casino California 28-7-2006
Audio : Fukuoka Japan 20-7-2006
Quality : ok
Kissin`time
As much as I would love to see an honest video of this song surface, this is nothing but a youtube clip of it. And it’s only 1:18 long. He did try to improve the original audio by synching it with the 7/20/06 audio..but it’s still not that great. Here a link to the clip posted on youtube with different audio.
Final note about this clip. There is no known full bootleg of this show listed on Naked City Bootlegs. Not saying there is not one out there, but it’s just not in circulation.

Sault St.Marie 20-7-2007
Audio : ok
3-cam
All the american man
Again, nothing more than edited together youtube clips. And again Naked City Bootlegs has no version of this show listed.

Madrid Spain 14-10-1983
Audio : Nashville,Tennessee 11-1-1984
Quality : 5
Drum solo(eric carr)
Cold gin
Gimme moore
Ok..now this is the best rare footage on here IMO. I have never seen these 3 songs from this show before. The only copy of the show that I know in trading circles does not have these songs on it. Now, the are listed on the new version of the entire show that you can get from the KISS Army Spain. But I have not seen that one yet. The creator of the dvd gets credit for trying to give better sound to the clips by synching it up with the Nashville audio, but I think I would rather have heard the sound from the footage first.

Crazy nights video shoot session (Playback 2x)
Footage is from “makin of crazy nights dvd”
Video: From video sessions (with audience)
Audio : Album version
Now were back into no new footage here. These are just snippets of longer versions of the “Making of” DVD’s that are out there.

Montreal Canada 13-1-1983
Quality : 7
Creatures of the night
Not really sure why this is rare. There are at least 3 different versions of this show floating around. Each having this footage on there.

Rio De Janeiro 18-6-1983
Pro shot
Quality ok (7)
(Without TV comments)
God of thunder
Again…not really sure about this one. Not only do they say it has no tv comments, but towards the middle of the song it becomes a small clip show of the show. Then some credits roll over at the end of the song. Again, does not seem like any anything special to me.

Overall I would say this is not worth the download. I give the maker of the dvd credit for taking the time to make it, but other than the Asylum footage & the Lick It Up footage. There is just not that much here.

I have been meaning to post this a lot sooner, but better late than never!! Anyway, it was noted on KISSFAQ sometime ago, that a full version of the 6/28/96 Tiger Stadium show was posted. This was the official kick off of the Reunion tour. If you have not checked out the show, you can do so here. I had only seen the pro shot that has been out for a long time (only 7 songs), so I grabbed a youtube downloader, put it on my tablet, and watched on breaks at work!

This is why there are bootlegs!! I was not one of the lucky people to see this show live, but man, watching it now really kind of put me there. This is by no means the best bootleg out there picture or sound wise, but this one gets the job done. You never got the feel of the crowd on the pro shot version, but this one gives you an idea of what it was like to be there that night! Sound wise I would give it a 6 or 7. Sometimes the vocals are bit muffled but for the most part, it’s really good. Picture wise I would only give it a 5 or 6. It’s shot from far away and sometimes it’s a bit blurry. When the taper gets focused…it decent. But having said all that, this is a good example of enjoying a not mint show. This show has its own special place in KISSTORY…so set back and enjoy!!

Deuce

The crowd is LOUD!

Vocals are a bit muffled

Gene is acting like the Demon of old!! Amazing!

Band sounds really tight!

Rap – Kind of rare they stop between Deuce and King Of The Nighttime World

King Of The Knighttime Wolrd

Really miss the amps rising up on the stage….always liked that!

Really good version

Energy in incredible!

The sound gets better!

Do You Love Me

Crowd sounds great!!!

Amps are coming up now…weird

Band sounds REALLY tight

Always love the extended ending….great!

Calling Dr. Love

Never been a big fan of this song live, but it sounds really good!!

Gene seems to be really into the show!

Weird to see Paul & Gene lean on each other while they are playing. Can’t remember a time when I have seen that lately!!

Cold Gin

Gene sounds really good

Song seems just a bit sluggish

Ace sings the second verse…nice!

Nice to see Gene & Ace high-five during the “guitar solo”

Christine 16

Kind of a rare song for the Reunion tour

Decent version

Gene’s vocals are muffled again

Love Gun

Band sound REALLY good!

WOW! The was Paul dropped to his knees was impressive!!

Nice version of the song

From what I could tell (and I am sure I am wrong) first pyro on the stage!

Shout It Out Loud

When the crowd sings is VERY loud!!

Really nice version

Actually, the best version of the song I have heard in a long time!

Watchin You

This need to me in the show NOW! This sounds so awesome live!

This is a KILLER version of the song!

Straight forward, really rocking song!

Firehouse

Killer version!

Paul is full of energy during this song!

Watch Gene just lurk across the stage…so 70’s to me!

WOW!!

2000 Man

No light up guitar!!

Really nice version

Ace sound good!

Strutter

Killer to see Ace & Gene rocking in time with the song again!

Sounds like the song almost falls apart after the first chorus..drums just sort of stop.

Other than that…band sounds tight

Shock Me (with solo)

Really tight, nice version

A tech runs out on stage and helps Ace with something

Seems like the “bugs” are not worked out of the solo yet

Ace says “something was bound to fuck up!”

Rock Bottom

Very cool watching just Ace & Paul play the into together!

Strange to see Ace with a double neck guitar

Very nice version of the song…tight

Gene’s Solo

This is one of my FAVORITE parts of the show

This is version sounds much better than what he does now

Crowd goes CRAZY when he flies!

Again..the crowd is just UNREAL

This is the Reunion lineup at it’s best!

God Of Thunder (with drum solo)

Sounds AWESOME

If you watch Peter during this song…looks like is playing his heart out!

During the solo for a minute or so..it looks like the Peter of old!

Looks like Peter is having a blast during his solo!

New York Groove

Looks like Gene kicks Ace in the ass when he walks by at the start of the song

Good version, Paul & Gene’s backups are nice

Let Me Go Rock N Roll

This is my FAVORITE song played live

Sounds really good

The entire band seems really into it

Again, if you watch Peter he looks like he is having the time of his life!!

100,000 Years

Paul has a TON of energy during this song

The bands is SO good during this song

Ace nails this song….WOW!

Rock N Roll All Nite

Crowd is so awesome singing along

This version is so much better then how sluggish this song got for a few years

They flash the words to the song on the screen during the sing along….in case someone does not know them I guess! LOL!

Miss the days of Paul throwing out his guitar to the crowd instead of selling it!

Wow..the ending was fucked up!

Beth

Most of the time I don’t enjoy this song live, but this is a really nice version

Well, it’s been almost a week and the I think the entire KISS Army has weighed in about the concert in New Orleans on 3/30/12. If you have not seen it yet you can check it out here. Ok, so here is my sort of review of the New Orleans show. I downloaded the show, put it on DVD, and watched it over the last week, taking some notes on what I thought while watching it. Before I start I will say this….there is no getting around the fact the Paul’s voice is not in the greatest shape at this time. I know people were hoping the the surgery he had last fall would help the problem…but I guess only time will tell. With that being said…it’s STILL KISS!! I for one am glad for any chance I get to see my favorite band perform live. I think Paul’s voice is something each member of the KISS army is something they are going to have to decide if they can live with it or not!! Anyway…on to my thoughts / review.

1.Мodern Day Delilah – This is such a great opening song!!
– Paul’s voice is rough, but I can live with it
-Overall weak version of the song.
2.Shout It Out Loud – Gene’s voice sounds great!
– The band overall sounds much tighter on this song

3.Deuce – Again…Gene sounds great!!
-This is great version…the band sounds VERY tight here
-Tommy Thayer is on FIRE!!

4.Hotter Than Hell – Good version
– Gene’s bass looks awesome!
-If they are going to play this, Eric needs to bring the big gong back to hit towards the end of the song
-The sirens going off at the end of the song just are not right. I am so used to hearing them at the end of Firehouse…

5.Let Me Gо Rock’N’Roll – WOW! Awesome version so far
– Tommy Thayer stills the show during this song!!
– Gene’s long bass slide at the breakdown was AWESOME!
– Best ending to the song I remember in a LONG time!

6.Shock Me – Tommy does a very good job singing the song…I know there are some people who don’t like it…but oh well.
– Eric knocks the backing vocals out of the park on this one…sound great!
– Seemed a bit strange with no guitar solo at the end of it.

7.Calling Dr. Love – Not much going during this song…just seemed like a normal version until the end and then I loved it!!

8.I Love it Loud – Really good version of the song…Gene again sound really good!
– Again the backing vocals are the best I have ever heard them live!

9.100,000 years – Paul’s voice is rough…but still good.
– So nice to hear this song without a drum solo in the middle of it!!
– Again…Tommy is on FIRE!!

10.Love Gun – Again…backing vocals sound great!
– Band sounds VERY tight on this song
– Paul’s voice is very rough during this song
– In many ways though..this is the best version of this song in a LONG time!

11.Black Diamond – Always like when Paul plays different parts of songs at the start…as before it’s “Stairway To Heaven”
– Eric does a really good job singing
– Nice to see they did not drag out the ending.

12.Detroit Rock City – Really Good verison
– Still love the “pause” towards the end of the song

13.Lick It Up – Wow…might just be me but I don’t remember all the flames shooting up from the stage
– Paul sounds a bit better on this song
– Love the fact the include “Won’t Get Fooled Again” by the who in the middle of the song.

14.Rock And Roll All Nite – The confetti shooting out of the air cannons if always a favorite part of the show of mine!
– The call and response Paul does in the middle of the song is really bad.

Overall considering this was a free show, I thought it was really good. There weren’t going to be any big surprises for a setlist….just a standard sort of greatest hits. The band sounded tight and really good! Overall I would give it like a 7 out of 10. Really worth the time to watch!!